Book Review

Basic Details:

Book Title: All in the Same Boat

Subtitle: Lead Your Organization Like a Nuclear Submariner

Author: Jon Rennie

Genre: Business/Management Skills

Part of a series? No

Order in series:

Best read after earlier books in series?

Available: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58053675-all-in-the-same-boat

Overall score:

I scored this book 5/5

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

Short Summary of the book:

If you are after some great advice on how to lead and motivate your team, this book may be the right one for you. The main lesson to learn from this book is that you should work together as a team and not work against each other. His life as a submarine officer showed the author the value of being a team rather than separate individuals or divisions. The book is interspersed with anecdotes of his career as a submariner and as a businessman.

What I liked about the book:

The book is easy to read and a page-turner despite being a book to learn from.

What I didn’t like about the book:

I loved the entire book.

My favourite bits in the book:

All the anecdotes the author spread through the book.

My least favourite bits in the book:

The book was enjoyable in its entirety.

Any further books in the series? Any more planned by this author?

I understand the author has written other books too.

What books could this be compared to and why?

This book can be compared to other books on management skills. It, however, is much easier and enjoyable to read than most others.

Recommendation:

In summary, I would recommend this book for the following readers:

Children No

Young Adult Yes

Adult Yes

If you like to learn new skills in management but don’t like dry narrative, this book may be the book for you.

Book Description by Author:

A deployed nuclear submarine operates alone - hundreds of miles from any support and hundreds of feet below the surface.

An emotionless and indifferent enemy constantly surrounds the crew. Thousands of pounds of sea pressure sit right over their heads, waiting to crush them like a tin can and send them to the bottom of the ocean. Even the most junior sailor's mistake can result in loss of the submarine and everyone on it.

To accomplish their mission and return safely home to their families, a submarine crew relies entirely on the actions of their fellow sailors. There is shared responsibility as well as shared vulnerability. Regardless of rank or experience, every sailor is vitally important.

When Jon Rennie reported to the USS Tennessee as a young junior officer, he had no idea what to expect. He didn't realize he was heading out on a four-year adventure that would change his life and establish leadership principles that he would rely on for decades.

On a submarine crew, officers and sailors work together in cramped spaces and challenging conditions to accomplish complex missions with no room for failure. As Rennie moved into leadership positions in the business world, he found that the basic underlying principles for success at sea also led to high-performing teams on land.

Leaders succeed when they create a unified team with a singular mission - when all employees perform like they are all in the same boat.

About the Author:

Cold War submarine officer-turned-startup CEO Jon S. Rennie has led nine industrial manufacturing businesses across four different companies, including Peak Demand, the company he co-founded. Prior to entering the private sector, Rennie was a nuclear missile officer on the USS Tennessee. He holds an engineering degree from WPI and a masters from Cambridge. He lives in Raleigh, North Carolina, with his wife and two children.